Disputes and Workshop 3rd KNAW NWO PhD Event

Disputes

Disputes are about the exchange of ideas and views about a specific subject in a small group. Two speakers will give their vision, after which the participants will discuss the subject looking at it from different scientific disciplines. No PowerPoints. Everyone is equal and can freely express their views and opinions.

1. Expectations of PhD and promoter

Titti Mariani and Hong Zang

Working as a Chinese PhD candidate in the Netherlands means adjusting to the Dutch scientific system, to different customs and expectations. What is expected of you by this system and by your promoter? Equally important, what do you expect from your PhD project and from your promoter? Sharing tips and trics.

Titti Mariani heads the department of Molecular Plant Physiology at the Radboud University Nijmegen.

Hong Zhangis a senior researcher at the Faculty of Science of the University of Amsterdam.

2. Becoming an academic

Claartje van Sijl

You are on your way to become an academic and want to deliver the highest quality research. But this is not always easy. For instance, which expectations and responsibilities come with becoming an academic? How do you conserve your integrity in view of conflicting interests? What is academic ethos exactly? What does freedom of research mean in practice? In this dispute you engage in an open dialogue with your participating peers according to a fixed structure. The dialogue is not about solving problems, but about clarification of opinions and visions. We will identify the essence of the question of becoming an academic, relate it to our personal experiences and reflect on the attitude that is required to deal with such issues wisely.

Claartje van Sijlis a philosophical career counsellor. Her PhD in philosophy combined with her training as a certified coach enable her to work with career issues on a deeper level. She has worked for the Academy for several years.

3. Getting published

Zhang Lei and Martin van Hees

We think it would be interesting for the participants to discuss questions like, what is needed to get published, who decides what gets published. But maybe also along the lines of ethical responsibility for you publications/research results, or duplication of research results.

Zhang Lei is publisher – Environmental Sciences at Elsevier. She obtained her PhD degree at Wageningen University

Martin van Hees is professor of Political Science and Philosophy at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.

Workshops

Workshops are practical in design and give in a short amount of time direction, tips and trics to broader subjects. In a small group with one instructor the participants will actively work on a subject and at the end will be able to put their new skills into practice.

1. Scientific writing (natural and life sciences)

In this workshop you will get tips and trics you can use in the process of writing. Writing a scientific article or a chapter of your PhD thesis in a new environment with different customs and codes than you are used to, is challenging. At the end of the workshop you will have the structure or the index of an article or chapter you have to write. This workshop is focussed on research within the natural and life sciences.

Name workshop leader: Harry Steinbusch

Harry Steinbusch is director of Director European Graduate School for Neuroscience.

2. Scientific writing (social sciences and humanities)

In this workshop you will get tips and trics you can use in the process of writing. Writing a scientific article or a chapter of your PhD thesis in a new environment with different customs and codes than you are used to, is challenging. At the end of the workshop you will have the structure or the index of an article or chapter you have to write. This workshop is focussed on research within the social sciences and humanities.

Frank Pieke is professor of Modern China Studies at the Leiden University. He is one of the three academic directors, and the executive director of the Leiden Asia Centre.

3. Programme management for PhDs

Brigitte Hertz

In this workshop, you get to make use of a planning schedule for your entire PhD program. This seems difficult at first, because how can you plan a project when the outcome of the research is not yet known; what’s more, is dependent on so many uncertain factors? We can show you that a large part of the PhD can be planned very well and participants learn to apply the rules of project planning to their PhD. Using the PhD planner everyone makes a concrete planning schedule. This system is free for everyone to use and can be found at www.projectmanagementforphds.com

Brigitte Hertz is a social psychologist. She began her career as a research associate at the Interfaculty Environmental Science Department of the University of Amsterdam. Nowadays she works fulltime in her own business, ‘Hertz, training for scientists. The training courses are developed especially for researchers and combine a great diversity of stimulating working methods and an informal style with a structured and effective approach. Brigitte is author of the book ‘Presentation of Research’ and co-author of the book ‘Finished in Four. Project management for PhDs’. She does her PhD on Scientific presentations with PowerPoint.